camcorders

At a press event last summer, a Sony product manager told me that some consumers still find hard-drive camcorders confusing and prefer DVD camcorders instead. Of course, that didn't stop Sony from introducing five new hard-drive camcorders at CES this year: the DCR-SR200, DCR-SR300, DCR-SR42, DCR-SR62, DCR-SR82. Wasting no time, Sony will start accepting preorders for these models on its Web site starting Monday and expects them to start shipping in March.

Topping the line is the DCR-SR300, with its 40GB hard drive, 3-megapixel ClearVid CMOS sensor, 2.7-inch Clear Photo 16:9 touchscreen LCD, and 10x optical Carl … Read more

The new DVD camcorders that Panasonic's rolling out for its Spring 2007 line all boast the same 32X zoom lens plus optical stabilizer, SD slots for still capture, and added support for dual-layer DVDs. The top-of-the-line VDR-D310 keeps up Panasonic's 3CCD tradition; the VDR-D210 and D230 have a single unspecified chip. The two lower-end models cost $450 and $500, respectively and are slated to ship in February; the VDR310 won't be out till March, and will cost $700.

Though Panasonic calls them "hybrid" camcorders--being able to record to an SD card or a 30GB hard drive doesn't qualify in my book--the new SDR-H200 and SDR-H20 both have shock-protected 30GB hard drives for about six hours of best-quality recording, optical image stabilization, and prices of $799.95 and $599.95, respectively. Though $800 might not seem low for a hard-drive camcorder, consider that it has 3 CCDs and shoots 3-megapixel stills. The lower-priced SDR-H20 compensates for its lowly single-chip status with the typical 32X stalker lens--at least with the OIS you have a chance of getting … Read more

Despite the emergence of DVD, hard-drive, and flash-based camcorders, Mini DV models still sell like hotcakes. That probably has to do with the fact that they offer so much for the money. Sony announced three new Mini DV camcorders at CES this year: the DCR-HC28, DCR- HC38, and DCR- HC48.

The Handycam DCR-HC28 has a 680,000-pixel sensor, 20x optical zoom lens, 2.5-inch, 123,000-pixel touchscreen LCD, and a 123,000-pixel viewfinder. As the entry-level model in the line, it doesn't sport many of the fancy features it's pricier siblings offer, but it does include Sony's … Read more

Samsung has decided to contribute to the trend of recording video to SD memory cards with the new SC-X300 and SC-MX10 camcorders. Samsung hasn't released very much information about either model, but we do know that the SC-X300 sports a 680,000-pixel CCD sensor, 2-inch LCD, and 10x optical zoom lens. Samsung says it's PictBridge compatible, so you can connect it directly to a PictBridge-compatible printer to print still images, but didn't specify the pixel count of those stills. They did share the fact that it will include an SD card slot and will have MP3, webcam, … Read more

RCA announced a new version of their Small Wonder minicamcorder today. A follow-up to the Small Wonder EZ101, the Small Wonder EZ201 is an extremely simple pocket camcorder with an extremely low price tag. With a suggested retail price of $130, the EZ201 is predictably spartan: a tiny, 1.5-inch LCD screen flips out for framing shots, and it records videos onto SD cards (not included). The camcorder has both a standard TV connection and a pop-out USB plug for easy viewing and transferring of movies.

RCA also announced the RCA Memory Maker, an accessory DVD-burning dock for the EZ201. … Read more

The highlight of JVC's Everio models for 2007 is the Gigabrid image-processing engine--an update that's sorely needed, given the poor quality we've seen from past single-chip units. And it must be better than its predecessor, Megabrid, because it's Giga, right? They all have 30GB hard drives, and JVC has added support for high-capacity SD cards, as well as compatibility with the company's DVD dock. The MG555 gets a bump up to a 5-megapixel sensor, too.

GZ-MG130, $499.95, January

GZ-MG155, $599.95, February

GZ-MG255, $699.95, February

GZ-MG555, $899.95, March

Leave it to JVC to do something just a little bit different with its high-end consumer products. The company's Everio GZ-HD7, announced today at CES, has all the right creds: three progressive-scan 1/5-inch chips; a Fujinon HD broadcast lens; a hard disk capable of recording five hours of maximum-quality video; and a reasonable $1,799.95 price tag. JVC bills the GZ-HD7 as the first consumer model that records full HD video, which might be true; I could swear that Sony's AVCHD models record at the same 1920x1080 resolution, but I don't have time to check (… Read more

Sony delivers its annual update for consumer DVD camcorders with four new models: the Handycam DCR-DVD108, DVD308, DVD408, and DVD508. These compact DVD camcorders replace the current generation and run the gamut from the inexpensive DVD108 to the full-featured DVD508. While most of these upgrades seem minor, the new DVD Handycams offer an important new feature: dual-layer support. These camcorders can now write to both dual layer DVD+-R/RW, offering twice as much recording time on a single disc.

The DVD108 and DVD308 also offer newer, more powerful lenses than their predecessors. Aside from the 40x optical zoom lens, … Read more